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A New Way Of Business Development - smartybusinessThu, 17 Aug 2017 11:21:59 +0000en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.7.5127907417Two Of Trump’s Industry Groups Are Disbandedhttp://smartybusiness.com/two-trumps-industry-groups-disbanded/
Thu, 17 Aug 2017 11:21:59 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8584Two of the White House’s top corporate advisory groups disbanded Wednesday in a direct affront to President Donald Trump, as the fallout from his controversial statements about who was to blame for violent protests involving white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, cascaded beyond Washington. The exodus of business advisers comes as a stinging rebuke to the president, who had sold himself as a businessman whose dealmaking prowess would pay off for companies and workers. It also stands as a remarkable breach in relations between Trump, the leader of the Republican Party, and a business community that historically has had an ally

Two of the White House’s top corporate advisory groups disbanded Wednesday in a direct affront to President Donald Trump, as the fallout from his controversial statements about who was to blame for violent protests involving white supremacists in Charlottesville, Virginia, cascaded beyond Washington.

The exodus of business advisers comes as a stinging rebuke to the president, who had sold himself as a businessman whose dealmaking prowess would pay off for companies and workers. It also stands as a remarkable breach in relations between Trump, the leader of the Republican Party, and a business community that historically has had an ally in the GOP.

Condemnations from business leaders, representing all corners of American industry, were striking for the ways they personally critiqued Trump for failing to attempt to unify the country in the wake of the violence in Charlottesville over the weekend.

“Constructive economic and regulatory policies are not enough and will not matter if we do not address the divisions in our country,” JPMorgan Chase chief executive Jamie Dimon, a member of Trump’s “Strategy & Policy Forum,” wrote to his employees Wednesday after the councils were disbanded. “It is a leader’s role, in business or government, to bring people together, not tear them apart.”

“Racism and murder are unequivocally reprehensible and are not morally equivalent to anything else that happened in Charlottesville,” Campbell Soup chief executive Denise Morrison, a member of the White House’s Manufacturing Jobs Initiative, said Wednesday morning, before the announcement. “I believe the president should have been – and still needs to be – unambiguous on that point.”

Trump came to office amid high hopes that he could work closely with the business community – after his predecessor, Barack Obama, had faced criticism for pushing for overregulation. Executives largely viewed the GOP’s control of the White House and Congress as a rare opportunity to cash in on a wish list of policy goals that they felt would help their firms and the economy, such as tax cuts and regulatory rollback.

But after an initial courtship between Trump and chief executives during his first weeks in office, business leaders have grown increasingly uneasy with his erratic leadership style and divisive statements, in which Trump often uses Twitter to criticize companies and executives he earlier praised. The severing of ties Wednesday represented the culmination of a rapid decline in that relationship.

“It’s entirely stunning,” said Bill George, the former chief executive of medical devices giant Medtronic and a Harvard Business School professor. “He gave them great access. They’re on these councils, and all those industry committees are coming together. Now they’re saying, ‘I can’t tolerate this.’ ”

“This has never happened – not in my lifetime,” George said.

Although Trump said on Twitter on Wednesday afternoon he was shutting down the advisory councils – to avoid “putting pressure on the businesspeople” – momentum was already moving strongly in that direction.

After Trump made equivocal comments about who was to blame for violence at rallies held by white supremacists and neo-Nazis in Charlottesville over the weekend, Ken Frazier, the chief executive of pharmaceutical giant Merck, resigned from Trump’s manufacturing council Monday.

Trump fired back on Twitter, saying Frazier, one of the few African-American business leaders in Trump’s orbit and someone he had just recently called one of the “great, great leaders of business,” could now work to “LOWER RIPOFF DRUG PRICES.”

He added that he could easily find executives to replace those who left.

But the reality was quite the opposite, and several other executives followed Frazier’s lead.

On Tuesday, Trump made more controversial statements about Charlottesville, including one that appeared to show sympathy for some of the people who marched with neo-Nazis and white supremacists. The weekend’s protests had turned violent, and one person had been killed.

Tuesday was the turning point for many executives on Trump’s business councils, who set up conference calls with one another Wednesday morning to discuss whether and how to sever ties with the White House. “Tuesday was a point of no return,” a person on one of the conference calls said.

Many of the executives on the conference calls indicated they planned to resign from the advisory councils. Stephen Schwarzman, the founder of Blackstone who chaired one of the groups – the Strategy & Policy Forum – crafted a statement saying the group would be disbanded.
Schwarzman did not respond to requests for comment.

Jeff Immelt, a member of the manufacturing advisory group and chairman of General Electric, said he found Trump’s statements on Tuesday “deeply troubling” and had told others earlier Wednesday that he was resigning.

“The committee I joined had the intention to foster policies that promote American manufacturing and growth,” he said. “However, given the ongoing tone of the discussion, I no longer feel that this council can accomplish these goals.”

Corporate angst about Trump began immediately after he took office, with many chief executives – particularly those in Silicon Valley – repudiating his executive order that sought to block the entry of people from seven Muslim-majority countries into the United States. His views on climate change also led to some estrangements, including with Tesla founder Elon Musk, who resigned from Trump’s business councils after the president announced he would withdraw from the Paris climate agreement.

But many executives found ways to heap praise on Trump and let him take credit for retaining factories or creating new jobs, even though some of those plans were already in the works before his election.

Intel, for example, announced it would create 10,000 new jobs following Trump’s election through construction of an Arizona facility, but it had already announced plans to expand operations in Arizona back in 2011. Similarly, Trump touted a March announcement by Charter Communications to invest $25 billion in the United States, but the company’s jobs plan was in motion as early as 2015.

Other companies, however, announced fresh plans to build and hire thousands of new workers. One of these – e-commerce giant Amazon – was celebrated by Trump last year when it announced it would be hiring 100,000 workers. Then on Wednesday on Twitter, Trump excoriated the firm – which for years did not collect state sales tax, though now it does – for “doing great damage to tax paying retailers. Towns, cities and states throughout the U.S. are being hurt – many jobs being lost!”

Trump has criticized Amazon founder and chief executive Jeffrey P. Bezos for coverage of The Washington Post, which Bezos owns, suggesting he is using it to advance his financial interests. The Post’s editors and Bezos, who has met with Trump as part of a White House advisory group called the American Technology Council, have declared that he is not involved in any journalistic decisions.

Trump formed corporate advisory groups in part to show how closely he was pulling in corporate executives after they often complained about tax and regulatory policies during the Obama administration. Trump promised them the largest package of tax cuts in U.S. history and a $1 trillion infrastructure package, but those plans have not materialized, while frustration with his comments and leadership style has grown.

On Wednesday, even the Wall Street Journal’s editorial page, which often reflects the pulse of corporate leaders, said the resignations of chief executives should concern the president. “A GOP President who loses the business class has a big problem,” the editorial page declared.

Trump has long said his background in real estate and numerous business ventures give him unrivaled expertise when it comes to rebuilding the U.S. economy, which has seen weak economic growth since the financial crisis in 2008 and 2009.

Before he became president, he railed against the state of the economy, decrying the loss of manufacturing jobs and dismissing the steadily rising stock market as a “big fat, ugly bubble.”

But on Tuesday, before his comments about the rally by white supremacists, Trump had a much different take on the economy. He said the “country is booming. The stock market is setting records. We have the highest employment numbers we’ve ever had in the history of our country. We’re doing record business.”

Trump’s eroding corporate support comes at a time when he faces numerous tests on Capitol Hill that will directly influence the economy and financial markets. The White House and Republican leaders in Congress are discussing ways to jointly push through an overhaul of the tax code in the remainder of 2017 that cuts taxes and allows corporations to bring back trillions of dollars in overseas earnings to the United States.

Congress must pass legislation to keep the government operating past Sept. 30, and Trump has signaled that he is willing to allow the government to shut down if Democrats won’t give him money to build a wall along the Mexico border.

Congress must also vote by late September to raise or suspend the debt ceiling. Failing to do so, many chief executives and economists believe, could lead to a financial crisis, recession and a spike in interest rates. The White House has given different takes on how it believes the debt ceiling should be addressed, but it recently has called on Congress to raise the debt ceiling.

]]>8584The changing face of marketing and its impact on talent acquisition…http://smartybusiness.com/changing-face-marketing-impact-talent-acquisition/
Thu, 17 Aug 2017 11:21:30 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8583The vision of CEOs and Marketers with regard to hiring valuable talent is undergoing a big transforming as new technology and techniques continue to dominate the marketing landscape. The HR Talent Acquisition Summit hosted by BW People gathered a combination of both HR and marketing heads, the two key departments that work very closely in an organisation. In one of the sessions held, the theme was- CEOs and Marketers Vision Over Hiring a Valuable Talent. The session was moderated by Pankaj Dutt, Managing Partner, Alexander Hughes. Initiating the session, Satyen Vyas, CEO, Symphony SUMMIT, said, “There is plenty of talent

The vision of CEOs and Marketers with regard to hiring valuable talent is undergoing a big transforming as new technology and techniques continue to dominate the marketing landscape. The HR Talent Acquisition Summit hosted by BW People gathered a combination of both HR and marketing heads, the two key departments that work very closely in an organisation.

In one of the sessions held, the theme was- CEOs and Marketers Vision Over Hiring a Valuable Talent. The session was moderated by Pankaj Dutt, Managing Partner, Alexander Hughes.

Initiating the session, Satyen Vyas, CEO, Symphony SUMMIT, said, “There is plenty of talent available but the challenge is to find the right ones. Don’t look for people when you need them. Instead, look for them when you don’t need them. Meet them and keep your search on all the time. Acquiring and retaining are two different things when it comes to customers and also when it comes to employees with retaining being a big challenge.”

Kushal Agarwal, Co-founder, XOXO, who represented the start-up culture, said, “The chaos in the start-up environment was exciting. Earlier, it was under the name of employee engagement. But it is a mess now. People walk in and ask for JDs these days.”

Shantanu Das, CHRO of Amway India, spoke about employee engagement in direct sales as he said, “The entire game of direct selling has changed for us. First is to engage your own people and second is to engage an entire sales force of about 200,000 people who have become entrepreneurs and are promoting and selling our products. The senior leadership should spend time in doing this. Engagement of the entire sales force is the fulcrum of our business.”

Suchita Vishnoi, Director of Marketing, Salesforce, spoke of the influence of technology in this process of recruitment. “Technology is impacting all of us. It is best to embrace it. New breed who walk into an organization and the existing employees should adapt with it and make the best of it,” said Vishnoi.

“About five years back, most of the jobs present today didn’t even exist. Recruitment happens when millennials and students find you as an interesting company. About 1% of all the branding that we do goes into attracting talent. In that way, we actually face more competition from start-ups,” said Kisha Gupta, Global Head of Academic Relations, Infosys Limited.

Vivian Gomes, VP, marketing and inside sales, CSS Corps, speaking of his viewpoint from a marketer’s standpoint, said, “If you want to do marketing, you better learn to change as marketing changes faster than Lady Gaga’s outfits. In marketing, people need to break those shackles of sameness and bring in freshness.”

Highlighting the importance of policies, Billa Bhandari, COO, Geneva Graduate School of Governance, said, “You should understand what governance is. Lots of companies have such wonderful policies. People don’t understand the risk of governance in this part of the country.”

Shraddhanjali Rao, Head of Human Resources, SAP India, spoke about the role of a leader in the present scenario. “You can’t have a CEO to be a voice person. You won’t be attractive then. Technology is changing and we can’t control that. What we can control is the quality of people getting into an organisation. This should be done by every leader across the organization. Not just the CEO.”

Shridhar Marri, CEO, Senseforth, said, “We do not have JDs in our organization because these are not just jobs but purposes. Before people were on the lookout for job stability but now they want more engagement. A very large chunk of people is disengaged now. People want to come to work for a purpose these days.”

]]>8583Business Strategies for Managing the Section 201 Solar Trade Battlehttp://smartybusiness.com/business-strategies-managing-section-201-solar-trade-battle/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 18:13:01 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8576If the remedies sought by Suniva in its Section 201 trade petition are implemented, the U.S. solar industry could lose up to 88,000 jobs, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. As an industry, we should do everything we can to fight it, but the truth of the matter is that the 201 is here, and we are already feeling its effects. Module prices have increased by more than 20 percent since the opening of the case, and module availability is extremely limited in Q4 of 2017. Companies are taking aggressive measures to prepare for the downturn, from stockpiling modules to

If the remedies sought by Suniva in its Section 201 trade petition are implemented, the U.S. solar industry could lose up to 88,000 jobs, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association. As an industry, we should do everything we can to fight it, but the truth of the matter is that the 201 is here, and we are already feeling its effects.

Module prices have increased by more than 20 percent since the opening of the case, and module availability is extremely limited in Q4 of 2017. Companies are taking aggressive measures to prepare for the downturn, from stockpiling modules to selling off assets. Developers and contractors large and small need to plan for how they will do business under a restricted trade regime that could last for the next four years — or longer. It’s critical that companies refine their business strategies today to manage potential outcomes of the 201 case.

Possible outcomes from a 201 petition

Most people in our industry believe the 201 petition will result in a minimum import price of 78 cents per watt for imported solar panel, as requested by Suniva. Others suggest that it will be closer to 55 cents per watt as a compromise to both support Suniva and avoid killing the market entirely. But while these are both rational assumptions, they are not steeped in the reality of the 201.

The truth is that the U.S. International Trade Commission has never established a minimum import price for a product in a 201 case. Instead, the ITC issues decisions based on tariffs, quotas and tariff-rate-quotas. So, as you are evaluating the best strategies for your company, it is important to understand all of the possible scenarios and develop strategies to minimize your exposure to rapidly rising panel prices.

Tariffs are a tax imposed on the import of all solar panels or cells. The tariff is paid by the importer of record and is absorbed through higher prices passed on to the consumer or lower profit margin.

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Developer strategy:

Ensure that your purchase orders clearly state that the panel manufacturer or affiliated sales arm is the importer of record, otherwise your company could be liable for the tariff.

Establish business relationships with the approximately 10 crystalline silicon photovoltaic companies that manufacture in the U.S. (as long as they use U.S. cells) and thin film companies around the world, all of which will be exempt from any tariffs applied in this case.

Quotas are government-imposed trade restrictions that limit the number, or monetary value, of solar panels or cells that can be imported over a specific period. In our case, this means that the ITC could issue a restriction on the volume (either by megawatts or by value) of panels imported from any one country. For example, the ITC could issue a decision that limits annual imports from any one country to 1 gigawatt or $350 million. If applied uniformly across all import countries, we would experience a shortage of panels in the U.S., resulting in a rise in prices and a contraction of the solar market.

Developer strategy:

Establish relationships with a diverse set of suppliers from different countries to help ensure you have an adequate supply of panels under a quota scenario.

Tariff-rate-quotas (TRQs)combine two policy instruments designed to restrict imports — quotas and tariffs — into a complex equation where quotas limit the amount of imports that come in from each country and tariffs are applied to all imports above and beyond the quota levels. For illustrative purposes, a TRQ could be applied that limits “tariff-free” imports to 500 megawatts. All imports beyond the quota would be subject to a tariff (for example, 25 cents per watt). The ITC could make this a fixed tariff or one that increases as further import levels are achieved. This is a common remedy at the ITC, and the most likely outcome from the Suniva petition.

Developer strategy:

Purchase your modules early in the year to avoid rising tariff rates.

Negotiate fixed price contracts that are not subject to increases from tariffs.

Understand how the tariff structures change based on import levels.

Monitor actual imports from countries that manufacture solar modules over the course of the year.

Shift your purchases to a different country/manufacturer when each country reaches its quota and higher tariff levels are set to secure the best prices.

All countries are not treated the same

A 201 petition is designed to protect the domestic manufacturing industry and applies a penalty to all countries (yes, all) that import a product into the U.S. However, not all countries are treated the same. Any country can seek to negotiate special treatment (higher quota levels and lower tariffs), with special regard going those countries that have an existing trade agreement with the U.S. (there are 20). For our industry, this includes imports from Korea, Singapore, Mexico and Canada. The only real advantage, however, goes to NAFTA countries that will receive separate assessments.

]]>8576More :PoliticsMoneygameClusterstock The members of Trump’s main business council are reportedly scrapping the group altogetherhttp://smartybusiness.com/politicsmoneygameclusterstock-members-trumps-main-business-council-reportedly-scrapping-group-altogether/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 18:12:33 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8575Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images … The members of Trump’s main business council discussed disbanding the group entirely according to multiple reports.According to the New York Times’ David Gelles , Landon Thomas Jr., and Kate Kelly , the members of the Strategic and Policy Forum held a phone call on Wednesday to discuss the future of the council and their relationship with the White House. The discussion comes two days after the departure of Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier from Trump’s manufacturing council, another one of the White House’s meetings of business leaders, set off a wave of departures from that group . Frazier and other business leaders

The members of Trump’s main business council discussed disbanding the group entirely according to multiple reports.According to the New York Times’ David Gelles , Landon Thomas Jr., and Kate Kelly , the members of the Strategic and Policy Forum held a phone call on Wednesday to discuss the future of the council and their relationship with the White House.

The discussion comes two days after the departure of Merck CEO Kenneth Frazier from Trump’s manufacturing council, another one of the White House’s meetings of business leaders, set off a wave of departures from that group . Frazier and other business leaders cited Trump’s muddled response to the violence in Charlottesville, Virginia as the impetus for the exits.

The Strategic and Policy Forum features a diverse group of leaders including JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon, BlackRock CEO Larry Fink, General Motors CEO Mary Barra, and Walmart CEO Doug McMillon. Steve Schwarzman, CEO of private equity giant Blackstone, is the leader of the council.

According to the Times , even if the group did not disband, a number of executives said they would depart from the council.

Trump, for his part, attacked those executives who left the manufacturing council calling them “grandstanders” and saying they were “embarrassed” because they manufactured their products outside of the US.

The manufacturing council is expected to hold a similar phone call as the Strategic Forum’s later on Wednesday.

]]>8575Local startup updates business strategy, to expand nationwidehttp://smartybusiness.com/local-startup-updates-business-strategy-expand-nationwide/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 18:11:59 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8574A local startup that connects banks and nonprofits has updated its business strategy, secured more venture capital and plans to expand nationwide by the end of the year. FindCRA helps connect nonprofits seeking support with banks looking to invest in their communities to comply with federal regulations. Co-founder Brian Waters generated the idea for the business in 2012 when he attended a luncheon at which Louisville nonprofit organizations were trying to make connections with banks to secure resources – while banks were trying to find projects to help them comply with the Community Reinvestment Act. The CRA, a federal law from

A local startup that connects banks and nonprofits has updated its business strategy, secured more venture capital and plans to expand nationwide by the end of the year.

FindCRA helps connect nonprofits seeking support with banks looking to invest in their communities to comply with federal regulations.

Co-founder Brian Waters generated the idea for the business in 2012 when he attended a luncheon at which Louisville nonprofit organizations were trying to make connections with banks to secure resources – while banks were trying to find projects to help them comply with the Community Reinvestment Act.

The CRA, a federal law from 1977 passed to end discriminatory credit practices, requires that depository institutions help meet the credit needs of their communities, especially in low- and moderate-income neighborhoods.

Waters, a former compliance officer for Republic Bank, told IL that over the years, the CRA had been expanded, and regulators now look at where banks provide services (including where they have branches and ATMs), where the employees volunteer, and to whom the institutions are providing help with financial literacy.

Poor marks from regulators can damage a bank’s reputation, require costly fixes and reduce the institutions’ ability to expand or merge, Waters said.

Making the connections is tough for both partners: Nonprofits have to navigate a confusing and intimidating process, while banks, especially smaller ones with limited resources, often struggle to narrow down projects that meet their needs from the many applications they receive. And as banks continue to consolidate, management teams have fewer insights into the nonprofit community in the areas where they’re purchasing branches.

FindCRA previously would identify community projects that would help a bank meet its CRA requirements, then find a bank to support the project and charge a fee for a successful connection. However, brokering the deals demanded lots of staff time, for phone calls, emails and other services, especially as the business grew: About 1.7 million nonprofits operate in the U.S., including 20,000 in Kentucky and 4,000 in Louisville.

Waters and co-founder Ben Loehle realized that they needed to change the business model to provide information and an interface that allows banks and nonprofits to connect without requiring personal facilitation from findCRA staff.

The company pulls publicly available data from about 20 government and industry sources, including census, tax and treasury records — covering nearly 1,400 individual data points — and, with the help of a proprietary algorithm and further curation, determines which nonprofits align with the CRA. Waters said that for Kentucky, one of the smaller states, the basic IRS data exceeds 300 megabytes.

FindCRA has identified 1,300 Kentucky nonprofits (out of 20,000) that have passed the company’s qualification process. Those nonprofits have customized profiles and a list of their projects on the findCRA website. Banks can come to the site and run searches by location and claim available projects.

The company now generates revenue by certifying the nonprofits for an initial cost of $300, and an annual fee of $150; and charging banks $250 per month or $2,500 per year per user to access the database.

The service can save banks cash and/or improve a bank employee’s effectiveness: If a bank’s CRA officer took just one minute to look up each of Louisville’s 4,000 nonprofits, it would take him eight full working days — and at that point, she hasn’t called anyone, and almost all of the work is still ahead of her.

An example of search results on findCRA’s website. | Courtesy of findCRA

Waters said that rather than bog down an employee with many hours of manual research, banks can pay a fee to access the information that findCRA already has compiled. The company no longer charges a successful connection fee.

The service is “invaluable” especially for smaller banks,” said Debra Stamper, executive vice president and general counsel for the Kentucky Bankers Association.

At many smaller banks, CRA officers have other duties, which can include generating loans, and if those officers spend less time to identify CRA-compliant projects, they can spend more time generating revenue or making sure the bank complies with other federal regulations, she said.

“It’s going to allow them to be more efficient,” Stamper said. “I just think it’s great.”

The KBA provided some feedback to findCRA to help the company fine-tune its service.

For nonprofit clients, meanwhile, findCRA issues a certification document and a narrative that they can present to lending institutions to increase their chances of securing funding.

FindCRA is nearly finished with analyzing nonprofits in the Midwest and plans to continue with the mid-Atlantic states, the Southeast and then move westward. Some of the states won’t require much time — Wyoming has about 4,000 nonprofits — but others will be tough: California has 160,000.

The company’s co-founders expect that they will have covered the entire nation by the end of the year — and expect to reach profitability in 2018. And despite the national aspirations, they said they plan to remain in Louisville.

“We’re very excited about where we’re taking the business,” Wilson said.

A recent infusion of $380,000 in venture capital is helping. The money allowed findCRA to hire contractors to do social media marketing, sales and data research. Last month, the company was selected as a finalist for the 2017 Inc.Credible awards from the local chamber of commerce. The co-founders also have started a free online learning center to provide information about the CRA.

The Louisville-based startup also is getting some national exposure: The co-founders will give a presentation before 700 bankers at the CRA & Fair Lending Colloquium in Nashville in November. They also plan to release at the event a self-published book that compiles 40 opinions on the CRA, to coincide with the law’s 40th anniversary.

]]>8574Netsertive Aims to ‘Revolutionize’ Brand-to-Local Marketing with Acquisition of Mixpohttp://smartybusiness.com/netsertive-aims-revolutionize-brand-local-marketing-acquisition-mixpo/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 14:44:22 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8567Netsertive, a marketing technology company announced Tuesday the acquisition of Mixpo, a Seattle-based creative management platform that enables publishers and marketers to easily build, manage and measure compelling video and rich media ad campaigns. Together, the companies will offer what we’re told is a “next-generation platform that solves the complexity, speed and workflow challenges in executing full-funnel digital marketing campaigns at the local level.” “Brands and their distributed retail networks must adapt to the complex reality of a click-to-brick economy,” said Brendan Morrissey, CEO and co-founder of Netsertive. “With the combined capabilities of Netsertive and Mixpo, our clients can scale

Netsertive, a marketing technology company announced Tuesday the acquisition of Mixpo, a Seattle-based creative management platform that enables publishers and marketers to easily build, manage and measure compelling video and rich media ad campaigns.

Together, the companies will offer what we’re told is a “next-generation platform that solves the complexity, speed and workflow challenges in executing full-funnel digital marketing campaigns at the local level.”

“Brands and their distributed retail networks must adapt to the complex reality of a click-to-brick economy,” said Brendan Morrissey, CEO and co-founder of Netsertive. “With the combined capabilities of Netsertive and Mixpo, our clients can scale their digital marketing across local retailer networks of any size to reach digital shoppers, influence their choice of products, and ultimately drive buyers to local businesses. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with the Mixpo team as a partner for the past year. The success we’ve had working together led us down the path of coming together as a single company.”

Netsertive’s acquisition of Mixpo strengthens its position as the fastest-growing brand-to-local marketing tech platform at a critical time for brick-and-mortar retail. Today, more than 90 percent of retail sales are transacted in-store, but the Internet now dominates the critical first engagements that influence what and where people buy. Still, many brands are not including local stores in their omnichannel marketing strategies, resulting in missed opportunities to help buyers complete their path to purchase locally.

“Mixpo’s interactive ad formats and dynamic localization capabilities are perfectly aligned with Netsertive’s broader brand-to-local marketing technology,” said Charlie Tillinghast, CEO of Mixpo. “Our joint offering will deliver tremendous value to brands and publishers looking to accelerate both the delivery and impact of their omnichannel marketing.”

]]>8567Moral Hazard And The Writing Off Of Indian Farm Loanshttp://smartybusiness.com/moral-hazard-writing-off-indian-farm-loans/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 14:42:26 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8566Amazingly, economists and bankers do ten to know more than just a little bit about economics and banking. It’s therefore worth us all at least listening when economists and bankers have something to say when the politicians decide to do something about economics and banking. As with these events over waivers of farm loans in India. Of course, there have been elections in important states and where the majority of people with the vote are farmers with loans then there’s great political capital to be made from telling them all that they needn’t pay back those loans. Yet we do

Amazingly, economists and bankers do ten to know more than just a little bit about economics and banking. It’s therefore worth us all at least listening when economists and bankers have something to say when the politicians decide to do something about economics and banking. As with these events over waivers of farm loans in India. Of course, there have been elections in important states and where the majority of people with the vote are farmers with loans then there’s great political capital to be made from telling them all that they needn’t pay back those loans.

Yet we do also have that slight problem of moral hazard. If people think that a loan won’t have to be repaid then they’re really rather likely to take out a loan. Further, if people see those who just cannot repay a loan getting them forgiven then there will be agitation for those who can repay not to have to. Which is indeed exactly what we’re seeing as this very good piece details:

The write-off of farm loans in Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra seems to be encouraging farmers in other states to stop paying back their farm loans to make sure that they will get the benefits of any farm loan waiver program in their state. This has led to a sharp increase in farm loan defaults for Indian banks.

That’s really not what we would like to see happening. That those who really cannot repay because of the vagaries of the weather, family disaster, an invasion of elephants, that’s all fair enough. But the mass write off of loans does indeed create this moral hazard:

In other words, they warned that waivers would encourage farmers to take more and more loans and not pay them back even when they can, expecting that their liabilities will be waived off.Increasing default rates also make it waivers more likely. Typically, governments will waive off loans only if and when default rates are high, and not if most loans are being repaid on time.Going by numbers from the Reserve Bank of India, some of the expert predictions are coming true.

As I say, it’s a good piece, they’ve got that second order effect right too. Waivers do tend to happen when default rates are high, but default rates will rise when people think a waiver is going to be possible. This acts very much like a bank run, the original trickle becomes the flood which causes the problem itself.

The answer here is, and it’s a harsh one, is that it much be painful to gain access to a loan waiver. Sure, debts that cannot be repaid will not be repaid, this is true of individuals and of sovereign nations. But just letting people off causes those problems above. Thus we have such things as bankruptcy to concentrate minds. If you really cannot repay your debts then fine, we’ll wipe the slate clean, you can go on about your life without being encumbered by what you cannot repay. And the banker or capitalist who lent to you loses their money, oh dear, how sad. But we do need the evidence that you cannot repay and that’s what bankruptcy really is. An examination of that state. Further, what resources can be recouped for the lender should be. No, not because this is necessarily fair but because we do indeed want it to be painful not to repay debts.

As the economists and bankers warned, India’s farm loan waivers are creating moral hazard and storing up problems for the future.

]]>8566North Korea missile crisis echoes Israel’s anti-rocket strategyhttp://smartybusiness.com/north-korea-missile-crisis-echoes-israels-anti-rocket-strategy/
Wed, 16 Aug 2017 14:39:27 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8564North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missileshave been making headlines again. There’s also been serious controversy over how the United States and other countries should react to that threat. To that end, it might help to examine Israel’s experience in dealing with actual rocket attacks. Some of my research has explored the properties of its interceptor systems. Israel is a leader in missile countermeasures because of its neighbours. It has experienced rocket fire for more than a decade from Hamas militants in Gaza and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. The country hasn’t forgotten Iraq’s 1991 Scud missile strikes. It also worries about future attacks from

North Korea’s nuclear weapons and ballistic missileshave been making headlines again. There’s also been serious controversy over how the United States and other countries should react to that threat.

To that end, it might help to examine Israel’s experience in dealing with actual rocket attacks. Some of my research has explored the properties of its interceptor systems.

Israel is a leader in missile countermeasures because of its neighbours. It has experienced rocket fire for more than a decade from Hamas militants in Gaza and Hezbollah militants in Lebanon. The country hasn’t forgotten Iraq’s 1991 Scud missile strikes. It also worries about future attacks from Syria and Iran.

Israel has consequently developed a set of countermeasures that provide it with a layered defence:

Blockade

One way to guard against missiles is to prevent hostile countries from getting them. Trade sanctions and military blockades can assist this.

Israel restricts trade into Gaza for this reason. However, Hamas responds by smuggling rockets inside other shipments. It also bypasses the blockade by producing Qassam rockets locally.

International sanctions against North Korea have likewise had limited success, partly due to its relationship with China. North Korea has also made domestic weapons development a national priority.

Deterrence

We can try to discourage the use of missiles by threatening to retaliate with our own weapons. But success depends on the opposing leader’s goals. Some might risk or even welcome retaliation.

For example, Israel has deterred Hezbollah from firing rockets for 11 years. But Hamas has not been deterred, as it benefits politically from occasionally provoking Israel.

Deterrence is the default solution regarding North Korea, as it was during the Cold War. It may be what U.S. President Donald Trump meant by his “fire and fury” comments. If North Korea ever uses nuclear weapons, it will invite massive U.S. retaliation and likely end the regime’s rule.

Pre-emptive strikes

The direct military solution to missiles is to destroy them on the ground. This counterforce approach assumes the missiles can be located and effectively attacked. It also risks collateral damage against civilians and diplomatic repercussions with other countries.

Israel conducts clandestine airstrikes against selected Hezbollah missile shipments for this reason. It destroys rockets on a larger scale during its operations against Hamas. One challenge is the large number of rockets. Israel has destroyed thousands, but thousands more remain. Another problem is rockets being stored in civilian areas like schools. Collateral damage there is unavoidable.

Donald Trump’s “military options” presumably include pre-emptive strikes. There are “only” about 60 North Korean nuclear warheads. But the U.S. would not want to miss even one. They may be hard to locate in that highly secretive country. They also may be well-sheltered and difficult to destroy without causing heavy civilian losses.

Interception

Once missiles have launched, defenders may try to shoot them down. Such interceptions are difficult to achieve, but make spectacular videos.

Arrow claimed its first interception this year. Iron Dome has engaged hundreds of rockets since 2011, though with much debate about its effectiveness.

The U.S. also has several interceptor systems: Ground-Based Mid-Course Defense, Terminal High Altitude Area Defense, Aegis (Standard) Ballistic Missile Defense and Patriot. Patriot has limited combat experience, while the others have none. Their effectiveness against North Korean missiles is uncertain.

Even good interceptors aren’t perfect. Iron Dome cannot engage every incoming rocket, and sometimes it misses those it engages. Fortunately, the rockets have small warheads. The U.S. would likely face only a handful of North Korean nuclear warheads. But missing even one could be devastating.

How attackers try to avoid detection

There are also ways for attackers to avoid interception. The simplest is to overload the interceptors by firing many missiles at once. Hamas has been unable to do this against Iron Dome but Hezbollah has enough launchers to try.

North Korea may have too few nuclear missiles to overload U.S. systems. But it could succeed with its numerous conventional missiles.

Attackers might also try fooling interceptors into chasing non-threatening missiles or ignoring threatening ones. The former wastes interceptors, while the latter lets missiles through. Possible methods include jamming, decoys or manoeuvrable warheads. This approach is probably not worthwhile for rockets fired at Israel. North Korea, however, could develop decoys to accompany its warheads.

An attacker could instead try shooting missiles at an interceptor system to destroy it. However, such counter-battery fire uses up valuable ammunition. Hamas artillery rockets are too inaccurate to make this trade-off profitable. Hezbollah could attempt it with guided missiles or armed drones. North Korea would not waste nuclear warheads against interceptor systems but might shoot conventional ones at them.

Civil defences

Finally, a country can reduce its missile casualties by preparing civil defences. These include warning systems, bomb shelters and emergency response units.

Israel’s warning system is called Red Color. Speakers, sirens and cell phone apps alert civilians of incoming rockets. The country has built concrete shelters in locations like playgrounds and bus stops, as well as in private homes. However, there is concern that attackers might someday use poison gas warheads to bypass these shelters.

An Israeli mother passes by a bus stop which also serves as a bomb shelter as she accompanies her daughter to school in the Israeli southern city of Sderot, which has been the target of rocket attacks from the Gaza Strip.(AP Photo/Anja Niedringhaus)

The U.S. could revive its civil defence program, starting in Guam and Hawaii. The priority should be the warning systems. Shelter needs depend on the warheads. Even ordinary basements or concrete buildings would help somewhat against conventional explosive warheads. More sophisticated shelters and decontamination gear would be needed against nerve gas or nuclear warheads.

Complementary layers

Israel’s countermeasures act together to complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses. Collectively they may have prevented thousands of casualties and millions of dollars of damage.

To achieve that, the country has spent billions, including over $3 billion of U.S. aid. That’s a lot to protect a small territory containing fewer than nine million people. The cost to defend the U.S. or its allies would be far larger.

]]>8564JLR patents aerodynamic design tricks on its vehicleshttp://smartybusiness.com/jlr-patents-aerodynamic-design-tricks-vehicles/
Mon, 14 Aug 2017 12:07:29 +0000http://smartybusiness.com/?p=8554JLR had filed for some patents that comprise a number of aerodynamic tricks in August 2015, and now the United States Patent and Trademark Office has published it this month. From the looks of it, future vehicles from JLR will have a lot less drag due to the manner in which air is channelled around the car. Some of the tricks include deployable bumper fins that could also rotate to fine-tune airflow at the front wheel. Plus there are active extending side-sills that clean up the airflow behind the front tyre before channelling the air towards a rear diffuser. We

JLR had filed for some patents that comprise a number of aerodynamic tricks in August 2015, and now the United States Patent and Trademark Office has published it this month. From the looks of it, future vehicles from JLR will have a lot less drag due to the manner in which air is channelled around the car.

Some of the tricks include deployable bumper fins that could also rotate to fine-tune airflow at the front wheel. Plus there are active extending side-sills that clean up the airflow behind the front tyre before channelling the air towards a rear diffuser.

We also came across two methods of channelling air at the rear end – one at the D-pillar and the other on the rear bumper. While the former looks to be a hollow section in the D-pillar with fins, the latter seems to be another set of active fins like those at the front wheel, which would channel the air inwards. While the whole idea is to reduce aerodynamic drag, we believe these enhancements would also increase efficiency and driveability.

Going by the amount of time that these ideas have been on the drawing board, expect to see JLR incorporate these aerodynamic tricks on their cars in the near future.